Shooting victim previously arrested for drugs

Part-time wrestling coach at Madison High jailed on suspicion of murder

San Diego  The Bay Park home where police said a man was fatally shot by a Madison High School wrestling coach has been the site of continued drug activity, with officers making 19 arrests there over the past couple of years, authorities said Wednesday.

The slaying of 45-year-old Robert Howard Colegrove on Tuesday followed an altercation with part-time coach Jeret Needham, who a witness said had been inappropriately groping the victim’s girlfriend earlier that day.

Colegrove was found dead in the backyard of his Denver Street home about 2:35 p.m. after neighbors reported hearing gunfire, said San Diego homicide Lt. Mike Hastings.

Needham, 42, who had coached at the school for the past three years, was taken into custody at his Clairemont home about 6 p.m. Tuesday.

Investigators said Needham and Colegrove had an altercation at the house about an hour before the 2:30 p.m. shooting.

The homeowner, Joe Pavlicek, said Wednesday that Needham has visited Colegrove before, and on Tuesday came over about noon. He said Needham started grabbing at Colegrove’s girlfriend “in a sexually inappropriate way.”

“She told Robert, and he beat up Needham,” Pavlicek said. “He came back later for revenge, I think.”

Pavlicek was among those who called 911 after Colegrove was shot.

After being taken into custody, fatal shooting suspect Jeret Needham is escorted to a police vehicle by San Diego police.
Hayne Palmour IV — UT San Diego

After being taken into custody, fatal shooting suspect Jeret Needham is escorted to a police vehicle by San Diego police.
/ UT San Diego

Police said residents at the house told officers they believed they knew the suspect’s name and described his vehicle. Officers soon surrounded Needham’s house a few miles away on Firestone Street. He surrendered after family members called him and urged him to give himself up.

Colegrove worked part time at Hands On Labor on various special event and staging jobs, doing everything from set up to audio visual to stage electronics, said his supervisor, Rick Davis.

“He was a reliable guy,” Davis said. “It’s a loss for Hands On, for sure.”

Colegrove also worked jobs for the sister company, Kleege Industries, loading trucks in the warehouse. His girlfriend also works part time for the companies, Davis said.

Davis said Colegrove worked for the businesses for three or four years.

Police said the 19 arrests they’ve made at the home have mostly been for drugs. Neighbors said people come and go from the house at all hours, some staying a short time, some getting into loud arguments with each other.

Court records show Colegrove and some of his housemates are among those who’ve been arrested there.

Colegrove was arrested on a weapons charge in September 2012 after one of his roommate’s was caught with methamphetamine and a pipe, court records show.

A police search of Colegrove’s bedroom turned up a leaded sap, an illegal weapon. He had been arrested before on a similar charge and was given three years of probation.

Arrest records also show a misdemeanor case against Colegrove involving marijuana possession in 2009.

Police Lt. Misty Cedron said the department has been working with Pavlicek to clean up his property and to do better screening on his roommates and tenants.

“It’s an ongoing project,” Cedron said.

Students and parents at Madison High expressed shock at the arrest of the popular coach.

As Giovanni Williams, 16, a junior, arrived at the Clairemont school, she said many students were just learning about the shooting and couldn’t believe it.

“I don’t think he did it,” Giovanni said. “He’s a good guy.”

Her mother, Meta Swift, said she, too, was shocked.

“He seemed like such a good guy,” Swift said. “I have nothing bad to say about him.”

Dwyras Brown, 16, also a junior, described Needham as a charismatic man with a good personality.

Needham’s neighbors said he was a married father of two. He coached wrestling after school and is not a teacher, school district Police Chief Rueben Littlejohn said.

Since the wrestling season ended in the spring, he’s had no contact with students, Littlejohn said.

“On behalf of the San Diego Unified School District, our hearts go out to both families involved in this horrific incident,” Littlejohn said.

He said the school would give full support to Needham’s son, a 10th-grader at the school, and any other students who may be distraught over the incident.